The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1887-09-08
CONCEALED WEAPONS.

Cunc tHty are diMHNS cOHcSuled. III
every community there are lew
men whose habit it is to prowl among
peaceable citizens, armed TO the teeth
with death-dealing weapons. careful
ly hidden away ont of sight. Con.
corning them and their law -deiyina
practice, we have few things to say
|. The TACT OF concealment is a
confession OF impropriety. The
right is always open and above board
1t is only the wrong that sneaks, and
hides, and seeks cover. Ii is in the
nature of men, especially OF honora-
bic men, to walk boldly through lite,
doing nothing by stealth; but when
man does a thing turtivelf he ac-
knowledges by that fact that he
knows something about himself which
he is unwilling Tor other people to
know, and that he Is doing thing
which he is ashamed Of doing.
,. The practice is foolish. Why
should u man take the trouble to fit
himself up with these accontrements,
and load himself with an unnecessary
burden to be carried with every step
that he takes! Little children some.
times subject themselves to needless
Inconvenience, and We think moth
ing of il, but when u man does such
thing, it eXcites our contempt.
3. 1t is cowardly; not only so, it is
cowardice acknowledged The weap-
on is for self-defence. Defence
against what? What is there TO be
afraid of? The great majority Of
men, in fact nearly all ct them, for
compared with the mass the excep-
tons are few, pass through life with
out ever touching a deadly weapon
unless for hunting or in time of war.
There are few timid creatures who
Imagine danger at every step, and
who creep through life prepared ion
desperate emergencies, when there is
not an emergency in thousand
miles As a kind Of cloak for ac
knOwledged cowardice, they often
assume the roll OF DULLES, and whel
they do not sneak they swagger.
4. 1t is mean 1t is putting every
body ut disadvantage Honorable
men are on all ordinary occasion.
unarmed. towards know this. and
take the dastardly advantage of arm.
ing themselves as they move about
among those who are not expecting
combat, or are not prepared for it.
1t is easy to be Il bully under such
circumstances almost as easy as il
would be to brqndish cne's fist in q
woman's hospital. The Constitution
prohibits unusual punishments, but
it occurs to us that an appropriate
penalty Tor carrying concealed weap
0ns would be to require the cowagl
70 wear pettlcOats IN public for nine
ty days But this is not practicable
1 Hence,
). We observe that the cases o
men who are guilty Of this foolish
humanity, mean and cowardly prac
tioe are usually those who have
great horror and dread OF work, They
submit to a fine with very lordlik,
air and pay it haughtily, as if the,
despised the law which thus come.
:'between the wind and their nobili
ty.' Now, in every case where one
of these is caught, let our courts
give him ten days at hard labor il
the chain-gang, and let him exercise
his muscles in breaking rocks tor the
public highways, taking pains 10 see
that he is suitably clad in horizontal
stripes. The law allows this, indeed
the law prescribes it as one OF the
penalties that may be imposed, a
the discretion of the court. If ter
! days should be found to be moi
enough, the courts are authorized BY
law to increase it to any amount no
exceeding 3G5 days, with six month,
in the county Jail besides, and ;
} thousand dollars fine into the bar
gain. The courts owe it TO the PEG
pie to protect their lives. The pal
try fines usually imposed for this OF
fence have been found by experience
tC afford no protection at all an,
every year there are scores OF vic
tins to the cowardice of the psto
carriers, and to the leniency OF tn
courts. We have a right to deman,
protection, and those who can pro
tect us and do not are morally parti
eeps e9imHts, 10 let these danger
Gus men escape with fine is to tri
fie with the lives Of the citizens. W.
have no objection to the fine, but W
} insist that additional penalties shoul,
be imposed, sufficient to put StoI
to the practice. The law that w
have is amply sufficient; all that W,
need is a proper enforcement of it
Until the Judges before whom thes,
creatures are arraigned give us TIN
protection which it is in their powe
J to give, they should be regarded a
, responsible for all the blood that i
E shed in consequence OF the perniciou
practice. Let the whole people CT,
out, Murder, murder until tn,